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Future's End, Part II (episode)
Janeway tries to prevent Henry Starling from launching the timeship without altering the past. Summary Henry Starling continues to prepare for his flight back to the 29th century to get more technology, which he plans to use to revolutionize the 20th century computer age further than he already has with his technology from the Aeon. Luckily for the crew of the news footage of the ship flying through the skies has been dismissed as fraudulent by most people, although the military are taking it seriously and therefore the crew cannot attempt another low-altitude flight. The crew of Voyager finds out that it was Starling's trip to the 29th century that caused the temporal explosion. Rain Robinson, Lieutenant Tuvok, and Lt. jg Tom Paris distract Starling by having Robinson call Starling for help. She implores him to save her, pleading with him that "people are shooting at me!" Suspicious but convinced, Starling drives to her location accompanied by The Doctor, who is wearing his new mobile emitter (provided by Starling). Tuvok and Paris transmit Starling's coordinates to Commander Chakotay and Lt. jg B'Elanna Torres, who are flying towards them in a shuttlecraft. They beam Starling to Voyager, but the shuttle loses attitude control and crashes in the Arizona desert. Annoyed that his technology did not prevent his capture, Starling reveals to Captain Kathryn Janeway on Voyager what his intentions are in traveling to the future. Afterward, Mr. Dunbar, Starling's assistant, activates a satellite in orbit around Earth and beams him back to Chronowerx Industries. Dunbar creates a diversion using a tachyon emitter and lures Paris and Robinson to chase him, believing that he has the timeship. Just before Dunbar runs Paris and Robinson's car over with his truck, Chakotay and Torres (having been rescued from Arizona by Tuvok and The Doctor) destroy the truck with a blast from the repaired shuttle. Torres manages to fix the transporters and beams Paris on board to return to Voyager. Starling, however, successfully launches the timeship from the Chronowerx building. Voyager s weapons are still off-line from their jump to the 20th century, so they cannot disable the Aeon. Ensign Harry Kim gets the photon torpedoes back on-line and can lock onto targets, but doesn't have firing control for them just yet. He informs Janeway that the phasers are still off-line. Just as the Aeon is about to fly into a temporal rift to the 29th century, Janeway manually fires a photon torpedo, destroying the Aeon. After the Aeon s destruction, an alternate Aeon emerges from the rift with an alternate Captain Braxton, who has no memory of past events. He detects Voyager in the 20th century and takes the ship back to the 24th century to their previous coordinates in the Delta Quadrant. He cannot transport Voyager to Earth in the 24th century since doing so would have violated the Temporal Prime Directive. Afterward, the Voyager s crew hold a celebration in the mess hall, for both saving the future and for The Doctor, who with his mobile emitter, now has complete freedom from the confines of sickbay. :"Captain's log, stardate 50312.5. We are again in the Delta Quadrant, at the exact time and place we first encountered the timeship. I've resumed a course for Earth and I've ordered the crew to the mess hall for a toast." Memorable Quotes "Agent Tuvok, what's up?" "Breakfast is 'up'." : - Rain Robinson and Tuvok "They've got lasers! A black man and some bald guy!" : - One of the farmers, about Tuvok and The Doctor "If my history is accurate, Southern California in the late twentieth century had no shortage of psychotherapists, competent and otherwise. I suggest you find one. Now... return me to ''Voyager." : - '''The Doctor', to Henry Starling "I'm a doctor, not a database." : - The Doctor "I've been equipped with an autonomous self-sustaining mobile holo-emitter. In short, I am footloose and fancy free." : - The Doctor "And you, Mister Leisure-suit." "There's a name I hadn't considered." : - Rain and The Doctor "What's good for Chronowerx is good for everybody." : - Starling, to Captain Janeway "Chronowerx stock is about to crash." : - Janeway, to Starling "Activate hyper-impulse." "Hyper-impulse drive engaged." "... Let's do it." "Command confirmed." : - Starling and Aeon, right before Aeon launches "Talk about a motley crew. We have The Doctor – a guy with the worst, worst taste in clothing I've ever seen. Tuvok – what a freak-a-saurus! Has the guy ever cracked a smile?" "Not that I can recall." "And you, Tom Paris – hmm, sexy, in a ''Howdy Doody sort of way, pretty goofy, although sometimes I think you're the smartest man I've ever met." : - '''Rain Robinson' and Tom Paris "God in Heaven help us." "Divine intervention is unlikely." : - Porter and The Doctor, before The Doctor stuns the two militiamen "Doctor, how –" "It's a long story, commander. Suffice it to say, I'm making a house call." : - Chakotay and The Doctor, as the latter rescues the former while nowhere near one of Voyager s holoemitters "Doctor, get down there." "How exactly do I get to torpedo tube 1?" : - Chakotay and The Doctor "Fire!" (The Aeon s computer beeps) "Uh oh!" : - Chakotay and Starling, as the Aeon is destroyed by Janeway just before it enters the temporal rift "Tuvok, has anyone ever told you you're a real freak-a-saurus?" : - Tom Paris Background Information Story and Script * The "Future's End" story arc originally included not only a second part but also a third and, at one point, a fourth. Supervising producer Brannon Braga explained, "Actually it started out as a four-part arc on Earth in 1996. The studio had some problems with that. They felt that it was too dangerous to attempt. The studio is not a firm believer even in two-parters. So we ended up reducing it to three parts, then two. I think it was a good idea, because it really made it a very taut and packed story line." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 109) On the other hand, Braga also stated, "Part of me wishes we had still done the four-parter, because we had Tuvok and Paris get trapped in a convenience store while it was being ambushed by gang members." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 84) * The subplot involving the capture of Chakotay and Torres by an anti-government group originally featured much more in the episode's plot than it ultimately does. "They had to condense it," director Cliff Bole remarked. "Basically, those were the Freemen, the guys in Montana. That could be a whole script! We had to just nail it for a vignette." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #15) * Some consideration went into the possibility of having Rain Robinson aboard Voyager, but this idea was vetoed by executive producer Rick Berman. Joe Menosky remembered, "Rick hated the idea. He just said, 'Forget it.' So we didn't do it." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 109) * Brannon Braga cited this episode's vehicular activities as bigger action set pieces than had been usual for Star Trek. Referring to the writing team of Star Trek: Voyager, he stated, "We conceived of big action sequences .... And we crafted big action set pieces like the chase between a Mack truck, a shuttlecraft, and a Volkswagen van." (Star Trek: Voyager Companion) Cast and Characters * In this episode, Henry Starling fits The Doctor with a mobile autonomous holographic emitter, allowing The Doctor to freely move about, outside of Voyager s sickbay and holodecks, and even outside of the ship itself. Actor Robert Picardo noted, "I'm mobile." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 91) Picardo had, during the second season of Star Trek: Voyager, suggested that The Doctor go on a planetary mission. Shortly after completing work on that season, he remarked, "I would be in some altered state, I would assume, because they would have to portabilize him." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 97) Furthermore, Picardo had also suggested – during that same season – that The Doctor should be modified for away mission usage in pieces, so that (for a while), his head alone would be sent on such missions. (Delta Quadrant, pp. 150-151) Despite these suggestions – and much in the same ways as Rene Auberjonois reacted to Odo finding his people (in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) – Picardo initially felt that giving The Doctor a mobile emitter would be a huge mistake and would ruin the character, before the actor eventually realized that it was the right decision: "I remember thinking it was a bad idea to give him mobility outside of sickbay. I thought that part of the audience's interest in the character was because of the limitations the character had and the challenges he had to face in trying to make the best of his limitations. But Brannon Braga was really right in that idea of giving me the mobile emitter. It opened up whole new storytelling vistas and I was the first to tell him that I was wrong – that the mobile emitter was a great idea." (Star Trek: Voyager Companion) * In general, Robert Picardo enjoyed working on this episode's two-parter. When asked about favorite episodes at the 2001 Galaxy Ball charity ''Star Trek'' convention, Picardo commented, " Future's End' was one I really enjoyed. Kate [Mulgrew] and I were really close – I look back at that with fond memories." (Star Trek Magazine issue 89, p. 32) * Henry Starling actor Ed Begley, Jr. enjoyed working on this episode as well as the previous installment, and felt that this episode's existence was warranted. He enthused, "I loved that I got to battle the ''Voyager people for two episodes and that I put up a pretty good fight .... It was a very good story, worth spreading over two shows." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) Begley also said, "''I thought it was great that Starling got to challenge them for two episodes. I have to say that he did pretty well for a man who was really just a 20th Century Neanderthal!" (Star Trek Monthly issue 26, p. 60) * Although Ed Begley had been unfamiliar with Kate Mulgrew before guest-starring in this episode's duology, their work together here familiarized the actress to him. "I feel like I know her now," Begley said, having worked on this installment's two-parter. "She's wonderfully talented–a very bright and funny lady." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) * Alternatively, Ed Begley had appeared alongside Robert Picardo once before. "I had ... worked with Bob Picardo on a '' episode," Begley explained. (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) Despite this connection, he only learned of it while performing here. "''Bob told me I was actually very nice to him then," Begley laughed. "I don't remember it, but he certainly returned the favor to me on 'Future's End. " (Star Trek Monthly issue 26, p. 60) * Ed Begley enjoyed working with all involved in the making of the episode, finding that they made him feel extremely welcome, and he very much enjoyed his time on Star Trek: Voyager. (Star Trek Monthly issue 26, p. 60) In summation, he noted, "I had a terrific time." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) He also remarked, "I just had the best time. I really did." (Star Trek Monthly issue 26, p. 60) with actors Tim Russ and Robert Duncan McNeill during the production of this episode]] * Director Cliff Bole inherited the guest stars for this episode from David Livingston (who directed the first half of this episode's two-parter). However, Bole was admittedly perplexed that Ed Begley, Jr. had been cast as Henry Starling. Bole explained, "The show had already been cast; I just picked it up when I came in to prep Part II. I like to be part of the initial casting on shows I direct. In this case, I would have had something to say about their choices. Ed was different, but Ed is Ed. I don't think he was the right man for the part. But he brought something different to the table, and it worked." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #15) * Actress Sarah Silverman found that, like her character of Rain Robinson in this installment, she herself became more familiar with the Voyager personnel as time passed. "In both cases, on the show and in real life," Silverman noted, "I got to know these people and what their lives were like and become a part of it." (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 61) * Regular cast member Robert Duncan McNeill liked the nature of the romantic relationship that develops between his character of Tom Paris and Rain Robinson here. "That was a lot of fun," the actor enthused. "I got to have a romantic interest that was very innocent. It was a nice change. That's something we'd been talking about for two years, how to deal with Paris' interest in the ladies without making him look like a cad. They did a really nice job of giving me a love interest that was sincere and affectionate without recalling all my casual remarks about the Delaney sisters." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) Production and Effects * Several scenes of this episode, as with the previous one, were shot on location. For this installment, the locations used were in Los Angeles and in the . The chance to go on location was enjoyed by cast and crew alike, including Cliff Bole. (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #15, p. 34) * The "park" in this episode's teaser is actually an area of the Paramount Pictures lot. Offices that can be seen in the background are actually the studio's administrative offices. (Star Trek: Voyager Companion) * At least part of the supposedly-Arizonan desert road was actually near the city of , situated in the Mojave Desert. (Delta Quadrant, p. 151) The filming of the exploding truck, however, was near . (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #16) * The scene set inside Henry Starling's car was actually filmed on a set. The production of that scene provided Sarah Silverman with an amusing anecdote about noted conservationist Ed Begley, Jr. "I had always heard about what an environmentalist he was, and I was so happy to be able to take home to my friends the quintessential Ed Begley moment," Silverman recalled. "We were sitting in the back of a car on set but in between takes. He took out his cellular phone, dialed a number, and I heard him go, 'Hi. It's Ed. Listen, could you go to the garage and unplug my car?' He has an electric car! I just sat there silently thinking, 'Now I can officially finish this job and have a great story to tell my friends! " (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 62) * This episode, in common with the previous installment, uses modified shots of the in Los Angeles to depict Chronowerx headquarters. However, one of the shots in this episode was especially modified for a particular scene. Visual effects supervisor Ronald B. Moore recalled, "We had the spaceship that had to bust out of a building .... We did the Transit Building, downtown L.A. It became the building and then we were able to manipulate it for the plane to fly out." (Red Alert: Amazing Visual Effects, VOY Season 3 DVD special features) * Before working on this episode (and the rest of Voyager s third season), CGI supplier Foundation Imaging had regularly worked on Babylon 5, although CGI Effects Director Ron Thornton thought the opportunities that Foundation was presented with on that series paled to the work they were given for this episode's adventurous two-parter. Thornton remarked, "We would never have had the opportunity on ''Babylon 5 to do shots like a truck exploding out near Palmdale, so it was very cool to do it on Voyager." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #16) Continuity and Trivia * The film – which includes the Borg Queen threateningly saying the line, "''Watch your future's end." – was released in the week after this episode first aired. * In the teaser of this episode, Tuvok says a phrase that is also the title of the second season Voyager episode . * Before returning to the 24th century, Voyager leaves some technology behind, including Captain Janeway's combadge (in part 1), her tricorder (in part 1), and The Doctor's holographic combadge. Considering that everything was undone when Voyager destroyed the timeship, these may have been erased from existence on Earth as well. Admiral Kirk and his crew also left technology behind in the 20th century (a phaser and a communicator) in . * Following its introduction here, The Doctor's mobile emitter would remain in place until the series' end. However, Robert Picardo initially doubted that the device would be reused. Following the production of this episode but still during the third season, he speculated, "I don't think we'll be able to repeat the method of how they got me off the ship." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #10) * The Aeon s cockpit would later be reused in and . * The events of this episode represent the seventh time (aside from the series premiere) that the Voyager crew has a possibility of returning home (to their timeline). * These episodes present a different interpretation of temporal causality than . In both episodes, a terrible disaster occurs, someone returns to the past and ends up trying to prevent the same disaster. In the season one episode, when the disaster is averted, the characters lose their memories and everything is exactly as it was before the disaster. Here, the characters retain their memories and are still in the 20th century after Braxton's ship is destroyed. * The Doctor mentions having recently undergone a severe programming loss, and that he is still in the process of recovering his memory files, referencing events that take place in . * Starling's company is called "Chronowerx," yet the inside of the timeship bay is emblazoned with "Chronowerks". * Rain claims to have seen "every episode of Mission: Impossible." Leonard Nimoy (Spock) played "The Great Paris" on this Desilu series following the cancellation of the classic Star Trek series (albeit, for only two seasons). * Although this episode posits 29th century Federation technology as having been responsible for the microcomputer revolution of the 1990s, the fact that the episode ends with Janeway apparently bringing that timeline to an end makes the reasoning no longer applicable. Robert Picardo came up with another explanation for the technological revolution: " is the guy that plundered the other alien ship that crashed, since the one that Ed Begley Jr. plundered now never happened." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 110) Reception and Aftermath * Regarding the success of the two-part episode of which this forms the second half, Brannon Braga enthused, "It was a charming, fun episode." (Star Trek: Voyager Companion, p. 121) * Both Tuvok actor Tim Russ and Chakotay actor Robert Beltran liked this episode's duology, too. (Star Trek: Voyager Companion, p. 179, Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 93) Russ opined, "It was a great two-parter." (Star Trek: Voyager Companion, p. 179) * This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 5.8 million homes, and a 9% share. http://voyagerview.com/review2.html Executive producer Jeri Taylor once reckoned, " Future's End, Part II' ... is the highest I think we had all year." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 107) However, this episode was actually the second most watched episode of Star Trek: Voyager s third season (on first airing), topped by the second season premiere . * Cinefantastique rated this installment 3 and a half out of 5 stars, referring to the episode's duology as "A terrific two-parter that was great fun." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 97) * Star Trek Monthly scored this episode 5 out of 5 stars, defined as "Gold-pressed latinum!". (Star Trek Monthly issue 26, p. 59) * The unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 152) gives this installment a rating of 8 out of 10. * Brannon Braga was extremely pleased with the response to this episode. He noted, " Future's End,' although it wasn't everyone's cup of tea, was a critical success, and a ratings success in a big way." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 84) * One aspect of fan reaction to this episode that Joe Menosky became aware of was disappointment that Rain Robinson does not get to beam aboard Voyager in the episode's two-parter. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 109) One such fan was writer Lou Anders, who had been secretly hoping that Robinson would somehow join the crew at the episode's end. (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 62) In fact, Rick Berman ultimately regretted that the writing team of Star Trek: Voyager had not gone ahead with bringing Rain aboard the ship. Joe Menosky remembered, "I think in retrospect, after the whole thing was done, Rick said, 'Maybe it would have been OK if we would have had her. " (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 109) * Both Brannon Braga and Jeri Taylor believed this episode's two-parter had an impact on subsequent installments of Voyager s third season. Braga observed, "I think, after the first two-parter we did together – which was a time travel show, I think, called 'Future's End' – it was just so much fun to paint on a bigger canvas." (Braving the Unknown: Season Three, VOY Season 3 DVD special features) He also said of the "Future's End" two-parter, "That was really, the turning point, when ''Voyager became a little bit more fun again. I think I speak for everyone here, in terms of the season. The show kind of started to rejuvenate, and we were doing much more what we wanted to do." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 109) In agreement, Jeri Taylor described this episode's two-parter as "the show that kind of began to swing us back to a more adventure-oriented sense of fun." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 84) * Straight after working on this episode, Sarah Silverman appeared on '' . "I actually did 'Future's End' and ''Larry Sanders back to back," she remarked, "''which were unbelievably opposite experiences, although they were both a blast. Another character from ''Larry Sanders is on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Penny Johnson – and we were talking about [the preciseness required of the dialogue in Star Trek]." (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 61) * Also after appearing in this episode, Sarah Silverman was surprised by the popularity of both ''Star Trek in general and this installment's two-parter in particular. "I'm ''shocked," she exclaimed, "''because I can't believe how many people watch that show. I've never been recognized so often for one or two shows. I was walking out of this studio to my car, and there was some guy building sets, with his back to me, and I said, 'Excuse me, do you know what time it is?' He went, 'Rain Robinson! You're Rain Robinson! I recognized you from your voice.' There are a lot of Trekkies out there that you never know." (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 62) * Following his work on this episode's two-parter, Ed Begley, Jr. considered returning to Star Trek. "Who knows? Maybe I'll do another ''Star Trek in the future," he speculated. "''Considering how much I enjoyed 'Future's End,' I would certainly welcome the opportunity." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, issue #11) This episode and the previous one constitute his only appearances on Star Trek, however. * Similarly, Sarah Silverman decided that, although she would welcome the opportunity to reprise her role of Rain Robinson if a credible means presented itself (an opportunity that, ultimately, never came to pass), she would be too scared to join the main cast if Rain became a member of Voyager s crew, as Silverman was generally very anxious about commitment. (Star Trek Monthly issue 25, p. 62) Video and DVD releases * UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 3.5, * In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS release Star Trek: Voyager - Movies: Volume 1 (with "Basics"), * As part of the VOY Season 3 DVD collection Links and references Main cast *Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway *Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay *Roxann Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres *Jennifer Lien as Kes *Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris *Ethan Phillips as Neelix *Robert Picardo as The Doctor *Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok *Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim Guest stars *Sarah Silverman as Rain Robinson *Allan G. Royal as Braxton *Brent Hinkley as Butch *Clayton Murray as Porter Special guest star *Ed Begley, Jr. as Henry Starling Co-stars *Susan Patterson as Ensign Kaplan *Christian R. Conrad as Dunbar *Majel Barrett as Computer Voice Uncredited co-stars *Carl David Burks as Lieutenant Russell *Damaris Cordelia as security officer *Andrew English as a security officer *Tarik Ergin as Ayala *Susan Lewis as an operations division officer *Louis Ortiz as Ensign Culhane *Richard Sarstedt as Crewman William McKenzie *Jennifer Somers as a science division officer *Unknown performers as **Los Angeles Citizens Stunt doubles *Unknown stunt performers as **Stunt double for Robert Duncan McNeill **Stunt double for Clayton Murray **Stunt double for Sarah Silverman References Arizona; Astrotheory 101; Baja Peninsula; bar code reader; bipolar personality disorder; California; car; cellular phone; Central America; chili burrito; class 2 shuttle; Dodger Stadium; Dorothy Chandler Pavilion; Earth; Edgemont Road; fast food; freakasaurus; Goliath Gulp; Griffith Observatory; helicopter; Highway 101; Hollywood; Hollywood Hills; hologram; holographic projection system; holographic simulator; hot dog; Howdy Doody; hyper-impulse drive; Indian; interferometric dispersion; internet; laptop computer; Lincoln; Los Angeles; Mars; Metro Plaza; microchip; microcomputer revolution; Mission: Impossible; mobile emitter; Neanderthal; nightmare; Nobel Prize; North America; pattern buffer; Phoenix; radar; SATCOM 47; satellite; Saturn; Soviet Union; space-time continuum; Starfleet Academy; Starling location sweep; stealth; tachyon; tactile response sensor; taxicab; telephone; teleporter; telescope; temporal core; temporal field generator; Temporal Integrity Commission; temporal inversion; Temporal Prime Directive; temporal transponder; tricorder; truck; UFO; United States Air Force; USS; van; Venus |next= }} de:Vor dem Ende der Zukunft, Teil II es:Future's End, Part II nl:Future's End, Deel II Category:VOY episodes